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The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (2019 video game)
| publisher = Nintendo | director = Mikiharu Oiwa | producer = Eiji Aonuma | composer = Ryo Nagamatsu | artist = Masaki Yasuda | series = The Legend of Zelda | platforms = Nintendo Switch | released = September 20, 2019 | genre = Action-adventure | modes = Single-player }} The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening }} is an action-adventure game developed by Nintendo EPD and Grezzo, and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It was released on September 20, 2019. Link's Awakening is a remake of the 1993 game for the Game Boy. It retains the original's top-down perspective and gameplay, along with elements from the 1998 re-release Link's Awakening DX. The game features a "retro-modern" art style unique within the series with toy-like character designs, diorama-like world designs, and tilt-shift visuals that evoke the original game's presentation on the Game Boy. It also features customizable dungeons which the player can create and then complete for rewards. Gameplay The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is an action-adventure game with a top-down perspective. Its story is set on Koholint Island, where Link, the player character, is stranded after his ship is caught up in a storm. After being rescued by a girl named Marin, Link embarks on a quest to collect the eight instruments of the Sirens and awaken Koholint's legendary Wind Fish in order to escape the island. Similar to other games in the Zelda series, the player traverses an open world with dungeons scattered throughout, featuring puzzle-solving sections and boss fights, along with trading sidequests. In contrast to other top-down games in the series however, Link's Awakening allows the player to jump over obstacles and onto platforms, and also features side-scrolling platforming sections. The "Color Dungeon" from Link's Awakening DX, which features color-based action and puzzle gameplay, is included. In the Link's Awakening remake, Link's sword, shield, and upgrades are permanently equipped, allowing more items to be equipped to action buttons in comparison to the original game. The E3 trailer also confirmed new additions such as a fairy bottle and a higher capacity of at least 20 hearts versus the 14 heart limit in the game boy releases. Various minigames also received updates, such as realistic physics in the claw crane minigame. As players progress in the game, rooms from completed dungeons can be collected as pieces that the player can use to reassemble their own dungeons by visiting the non-player character Dampé at his shack. The player can then complete these dungeons in a time attack mode to earn rewards such as a life-replenishing fairy bottle, contributing to an increased replay value over the original game. The use of Amiibo figurines in a customized dungeons activates "plus effects" that enhance the gameplay of the dungeons. Using the Link figurine from the Link's Awakening series of Amiibo summons Shadow Link, who chases the player through the dungeon and increases the value of rewards earned upon completing the dungeon. Other figurines from the Zelda series of Amiibo and Zelda-themed figurines from the Super Smash Bros. series of Amiibo have their own plus-effects in Link's Awakening. Development 's 1:1 presentation on the Game Boy do not fill the remake's widescreen presentation]] The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is a remake of the 1993 game developed for the Game Boy. Link's Awakening had previously been remastered for the Game Boy Color in 1998 as The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX. While the original game was presented in 2D graphics in an almost square ratio on the Game Boy, the remake is presented in 3D graphics and a widescreen ratio on the Nintendo Switch. Some sections of the game's dungeons do not fill the width of the screen though, as certain puzzles and boss fights were designed to work with the tile count of the game's original square ratio. The game adopts a "retro-modern" art style distinct from other games in the series, departing from the original game's A Link to the Past-inspired art style while retaining its simplicity. The game's toy-like plasticine character designs also depart from the Wind Waker-inspired designs typical of many top-down Zelda games since the release of Four Swords Adventures. Its visual presentation features a tilt-shift effect that exaggerates the camera's perspective and depth of field. The tilt-shift effect was inspired by the appearance of the original game's "small ... but very vast" world on the Game Boy's 66 millimeter screen; series producer Eiji Aonuma chose a diorama-like art style to help achieve this effect. Dampé's shack, which houses the player's customized "Chamber Dungeons", replaced the Camera Shop from Link's Awakening DX, which served as a Game Boy Printer hub. Aonuma introduced Chamber Dungeons as a way of allowing players to create their own dungeons without difficulty – purposing it as a puzzle itself for players to solve. While the original game and DX use sprite graphics for the cutscenes, the remake features traditionally animated cutscenes, directed and storyboarded by Junichi Yamamoto. Oswald Katou handled the concept art, backgrounds, and color design. Release 2019]] The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening was announced via a trailer showcased during a Nintendo Direct presentation in February 2019, and was showcased with a demo at E3 2019 that June. The game is published by Nintendo, and was released on September 20, 2019, distributed digitally via the Nintendo eShop, and on physical game cards through third-party retailers. A "Dreamer Edition" of Link's Awakening included the physical version of the game packaged with a Dreamer Art Book featuring concept art. A "Limited Edition" exclusive to Europe included the physical version of the game encased in a Game Boy-themed SteelBook packaged with an expanded 120-page art book. A Link's Awakening-series Amiibo figurine of Link was released simultaneously with the game, replicating the character's design as he appears in Link's Awakening. Aonuma described it as the first Amiibo figurine to faithfully replicate Link's in-game appearance. Reception | 4P = 90% | Destruct = 9/10 | EGM = 8/10 | EuroG = Essential | GI = 9/10 | GRadar = | GSpot = 8/10 | IGN = 9.4/10 | NLife = 9/10 | NWR = 8.5/10 | USG = | VG247 = }} The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening received critical acclaim. It had, "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic. Critics praised the game's graphics, updated controls, music, and new features, though they criticized the occasional frame rate drops. Most reviewers agreed that the main game needed little change, but that the quality of life updates were welcome. Forbes review states that Link's Awakening is "an excellent remake of an already faultless Zelda game" . While USgamer stated that the remake "improves most of the flaws" from the GameBoy version while maintaining what made it a classic in the first place, they did note that "slowdown issues pop up from time to time". Awards Footnotes Notes Sources # |url-status=live}} # }} Citations External links * * [https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/the-legend-of-zelda-links-awakening-switch The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening] at Nintendo.com Category:2019 video games Category:Action-adventure games Category:Nintendo Switch eShop games Category:Nintendo Switch games Category:Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development games Category:Nintendo Switch-only games Category:The Legend of Zelda video games Category:Top-down video games Category:Single-player video games Category:Dreams in video games Category:Video games developed in Japan Category:Video game remakes Category:Video games set on fictional islands Category:Video games that use Amiibo figurines